LONG ISLAND -- Congressman George Santos' former roommate, Gustavo Ribeiro Trelha issued a sworn statement to federal investigators, accusing Santos of masterminding a 2017 credit card scheme in Seattle, according to a Politico report.
"He was not my roommate, he actually took over my lease when my mother was passing away," Santos said.
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U.S. Secret Service agents interviewed Santos in 2017 as part of the ATM fraud investigation that targeted Trelha.
"He never lived with me - saw him maybe a couple times in my life moving fast forward, got a call from one of the roommates, 'oh we need some help, our friend got arrested," said Santos.
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Sources tell ABC News the case began when police in Seattle spotted someone removing a card-skimming device used to steal ATM account numbers from a bank. Investigators found several card skimmers in a Seattle hotel where Trelha had been staying.
Sources also tell ABC that the shopping address on the packaging for some of the skimming devices was the same address where Santos lived in Florida.